Urban Planning News

Seoul Station Overpass to Connect Daewoo Foundation and Four Nearby Buildings

08/25/2015SMG2654

Seoul Station Overpass and five nearby buildings, including the Daewoo Foundation Building, will be connected by a network of pedestrian walkways scheduled to be opened to the public in April 2017. To this end, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will sign an MOU with representatives of the five buildings regarding the installation of the walkways on August 21, 2015.

This is the first step in the creation of the “17 pedestrian roads” that have been designed as part of the “Seoul Station 7017 Project,” announced by the Seoul Metropolitan Government in January. The city government believes connecting these buildings to nearby areas will provide people with greater access to leisure and entertainment spaces, contributing to the reinvigoration of the local economy.

This MOU will be signed to establish a specific action plan for the installation of the pedestrian walkways, and reviews and discussions of the plan are currently being carried out. Moreover, based on a variety of creative ideas for the project, the Seoul Metropolitan Government will continue developing the area surrounding the overpass as a new attraction in Seoul.

Expected to be completed by March 2017, the pedestrian roads will connect the Seoul Square Building and Yangdong Children’s Park, both of which were filming locations for the popular Korean drama Misaeng (Incomplete Life), as well as Namdaemun Church, the Millennium Seoul Hilton, and Namsan Park. Moreover, the Daewoo Foundation Building and Millennium Seoul Hilton will be connected to Namsan Park by small passages.

The Seoul Metropolitan Government expects that these passages will attract greater numbers of people to these buildings as well as nearby areas, such as Namdaemun Market, thereby breathing new life into the Seoul Station area and revitalizing neighborhoods across this part of Seoul.

Speaking about the project, Mayor Park Won Soon said, “Connecting Seoul Station Overpass and nearby buildings will create a foundation for citizen participation through which these areas can coexist. By bringing people together and providing them spaces for leisure as well as easy access to nearby places, Seoul Station Overpass will serve as a catalyst for urban renewal.”